This invention relates to a shaped alimentary paste product and, more particularly, to an improved lasagna noodle.
Conventional lasagna noodles in the past generally consisted of elongate ribbons of alimentary paste having ripples or flutes formed along the longitudinal edges of the elongate ribbon and having either flat planar centers between the fluted edges, or open ended corrugations or ridges extending longitudinally of the ribbons. By way of example, a conventional lasagna noodle having such fluted edges and longitudinally extending ridges is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,686,720.
The present invention is an improvement over such prior lasagna noodles. The lasagna noodle incorporating the principles of the present invention results in better compacting of the noodles with adjacent noodles, both above and below a given noodle, in the finally prepared lasagna. Another advantage of the noodles incorporating the principles of the present invention are that they retain more sauce in their corrugations and, thereby, more readily maintain the integrity of the lasagna during serving. And, the lasagna noodle incorporating the principles of the present invention results in a more uniform distribution of the sauce in the lasagna product than did the prior noodles. Moreover, the proportion of noodle in the finished product may be larger for a given number of noodles when the noodle of the invention is employed than where the same number of prior noodles are employed or, conversely, a fewer number of noodles incorporating the principles of the present invention may be utilized than where the prior noodles are employed to obtain the same proportion of noodles in the finished product. Finally, the lasagna noodle incorporating the principles of the present invention may be formed of ingredients customarily used in the manufacture of pasta and may be formed by using existing equipment, including continuous noodle presses, now used in the industry.
In a principal aspect of the present invention, a shaped alimentary paste product comprises a substantially straight, elongate ribbon of the paste, and a plurality of corrugations formed in the ribbon, the corrugations extending transversely across the width of the ribbon, but having a length less than the total width of the ribbon, at least some of the corrugations being closed at their ends.
In another principal aspect of the present invention, all of the corrugations are closed at their ends and a planar margin is defined between the elongate edges of the ribbon and the closed ends of the corrugations.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood through a consideration of the following detailed description.